AIG Market Update: Demand for Cyber Insurance in Singapore to Grow by 50 per cent in 2016

Top forecasted growth industries: finance, healthcare and technology

Date Published31.03.2016

TopicPress Releases

SINGAPORE, March 31, 2016 – The cyber insurance market in Singapore is forecast to grow by 50 per cent this year as more businesses look to mitigate the high reputational and financial risks associated with cyber breaches, according to AIG Asia Pacific Insurance Pte. Ltd. ('AIG Singapore').

As Singapore gears up in its drive to be the world’s first Smart Nation, new interconnected technologies and increasing automation mean a rise in threats of cyber attacks and sabotage for all companies.

AIG Singapore’s Head of Financial Lines, Ms Lai Yen Yen, said: “While cyber attacks grow in size, volume and sophistication, defensive methods and technologies have not seen a corresponding evolution, potentially costing businesses millions in the event of a cyber breach.”

Research undertaken by AIG1 revealed that two-thirds of public companies in Asia surveyed acknowledged cyber insurance to be increasingly important in the future, although only nine per cent of these companies were covered by cyber insurance.

Ms Lai said, “Over the past three years, AIG Singapore has seen a seven-fold increase in inquiries about cyber insurance policies. We predict this strong demand from Singapore companies will continue over the next five years. Based on what we have observed, less than 10 per cent of Singapore companies hold such insurance, but we forecast that the number of companies taking up cyber insurance will accelerate to 40 per cent by 2020.”

AIG Singapore expects strong demand for cyber insurance to continue from finance and technology companies, and new demand to emerge from healthcare companies. The insurer also forecasts cyber risks in 2016 to range from both internal and external factors, including lack of data encryption, increased use of malware, and outsourcing to third party providers.

“Not only do data leaks result in financial losses including compensation payouts and regulatory investigation, but reputational damage and loss of consumer confidence can also have a long-term impact on a company’s bottom line,” said Ms Lai.

“The profound impact of a cyber attack means risks of this nature are starting to rank in the top three exposures of any business, regardless of the industry or size. Our research in 2014 showed that 42 per cent of companies were concerned about loss of reputation, and 33 per cent were concerned about protecting against financial loss.”

Ms Lai added, “More companies are approaching insurers to seek protection for their business and improve their risk mitigation frameworks. For example, AIG Singapore’s CyberEdge® policy can help a company in the event of a cyber breach by getting crisis consultants and legal advisors involved quickly to help mitigate the exposures.”

Small and medium businesses (SMEs) are also not immune to cyber risk, and the growing recognition of SMEs’ vulnerability has prompted the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore to launch security starter kits. Building on these efforts, AIG Singapore launched a CyberEdge® insurance product for SMEs in March 2016 to get these enterprises started on cyber protection.

AIG has been providing cyber security protection since 1999, and was the first insurer to launch insurance cover against cyber attacks in Singapore in 2012.

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1 The research was carried out in late 2014 at AIG Corporate Governance events, and which surveyed Chief Financial Officers, Risk Managers, and General Counsel from listed companies.